Wednesday, 12 July 2017

Stop Making Excuses

One thing that continually gets my back up are the people, or more specifically the bloggers, who make up numerous lame excuses for not shopping cruelty free. This post has been bubbling away inside me for some time now so apologies if it sounds like a rant, but at the same time I need to vent! 

I think it’s a huge shame that in this day and age there aren't more big bloggers promoting cruelty free products because the impact they could have on the entire industry could be potentially huge. I saw a glimmer of hope when fellow vegan and YouTuber Naomi Smart said she was going cruelty free, only to then see her promoting high end designer brands who do test in one of her videos a few months later. Not only is this confusing the whole subject of being cruelty free, but it also just screams that she sold out to her audience. I guess when the big brands come knocking and the pay cheque is large enough ethics go completely out the window!??  

Last week I read a ridiculous blog post by a fellow beauty blogger who claimed to be an animal lover, and against animal testing, but who was choosing to continue to buy from brands who test on animals because, you know,.....great makeup. I’m not really sorry if this offends anyone because quite frankly it’s bulls**t! There are no two ways around it - if you are an animal lover then you need to shop cruelty free! If you don't then you are just supporting unnecessary cruelty towards animals, and worst of all promoting it. The really sad, and slighty crazy, thing is that she actually has the word 'bunny' in her blog name. 

The big news of Nars losing their cruelty free status by selling out to China has certainly ruffled some feathers in the world of beauty blogging and it would seem that for some the prospect of never using their favourite foundation again is more upsetting than animals suffering pain and dying needlessy all in the name of make up.    

Lets get real here for a moment… When it comes to shopping cruelty free there is no rule book. To be someone who is against animal testing and who only shops cruelty free does not automatically mean you need to be a vegetarian or a vegan. Yes one would hope that your compassion towards animals will lead to other positive lifestyle changes, like not eating them, but for now you’re doing great. You are on a path of discovery and you are making a big difference so you should be proud of that. 

This whole attitude of ‘well if i’m not going to be perfect then I may as well not bother’ is another load of crap which quite frankly just screams of laziness and is an excuse to cover up the fact that you just don’t care enough. Any small change in the right direction is a change worth celebrating. Small changes lead to bigger changes and influence others to make better choices. The ripple effect in itself is much huger than anyone can even begin to imagine.

I read a comment on Twitter last week which literally left my jaw wide open. One woman claimed she couldn’t make the leap towards going cruelty free because it meant she wouldn’t be able to eat burgers anymore. I’m just going to let that sink in with you for minute…. 

To be completely honest I would much rather someone say that they’re just not that into animals than someone who pretends to be an animal lover, and who makes bold claims that they’re against animal testing, but who will still buys non cruelty free products. If those statements were true then you would simply stop buying from the brands who test on animals, no matter how amazing the makeup is. I’m so tired of reading these excuses and i’m annoyed that people just can’t be honest with themselves, and their readers/viewers. 

When I first decided to start shopping cruelty free I was a meat eater. I then became vegetarian and a year later I started a journey into veganism. I am not perfect, I get things wrong from time to time and I personally don’t think the perfect vegan exists. That being said, I can appreciate what a difference the smallest of changes make. It’s not easy making big lifestyle changes, especially when you have only shopped a specific brand since as far back as you can remember. Trust me, as a previous MAC customer of 10+ years that change was bloody difficult to make and for a while it sucked. But I did it, eventually, and over time, because I had felt like a friggin' animal loving hypocrite for far too long.   

I will support anyone no matter where they’re at in their journey, as long as they’re aware of the changes that need to be made and are working towards that. Shopping cruelty free but still eating meat is better than not giving a shit altogether you know? If you want to go vegan but can’t give up your favourite dairy milk chocolate then go vegan but still eat that chocolate because that’s better than not trying at all. 

Small changes can lead to big progress and lets not forget the power of supply and demand. If we all stop buying a product it’s going to have an impact! People are going to start to take note and ask why. You just need the belief that change is possible and the motivation to actually give a shit!   

We’re in 2017 and it has never been easier to be cruelty free than it is today. There’s an abundance of excellent cruelty free products and makeup out there, it’s just about doing your research and discovering what you do and don’t like. It takes time, it’s not an overnight transition but it is extremely worthwhile and you will feel like a better person for it. 

So what's your excuse? 


  1. That's a shame :( do you think maybe these people you've mentioned don't realise or do their research with it? Or do you think they claim to be CF because it's become a bit of a trend? I feel your pain - it annoys me when people say "it's expensive" when there are so many affordable brands - it's just about educating yourself. I'm still learning myself but the switch has been surprisingly easy. Great post Hun xx

    Sophie Elizabeth

  2. this is absolutely spot on

  3. Thank you for writing this. Sometimes I think it's hard for people to either make the connection, or not want to change their habits because they enjoy the product of exploitation from their privileged position. I've been vegan for 6 years and I will only live cruelty free now, but it was a gradual process of phasing out certain things over the first year (using up old make up products etc. as I don't like to waste things). I hope that people will want to understand where their products and food comes from in order to cut out the exploitation. Education is key and blogs like yours help with this, so thanks!

  4. I am finding your blog and videos such a help in transitioning. Not to mention the travelling from the comfort of my own home (I'm not a great traveller!) Like you, I went cruelty free first. To me it seemed worse to have animals suffer for my vanity, than for my sustenance. But then that led on to becoming plant based, and heading towards veganism. I found the cruelty free change pretty easy, especially with Superdrug nearby. It's always my first check point now.
    I can understand how it takes different people different time and routes to where they want to be. I don't understand how those that are ethical vegans are not cruelty free. I feel that some vegan bloggers are just jumping on the latest trend.
    Hope the house move happens soon for you.

  5. Absolutely love this post! I think someone needed to say something & you did it in a great way.
    I have also seen some bloggers sell out their ethics for the money- which is disgusting, something I would never do. Thank you for sharing this hopefully it will make a change & make people realise.

    Love Soph

  6. I honestly couldn't have put this better myself!! I wholeheartedly agree with you - and this has been something that's been bugging me, too. I try my best to be vegan, and have managed to make the transition to not buying anything tested on animals - and I don't understand how the animal lovers around me can't make this change?!
    I know it's difficult as the likes of Estee Lauder/Loreal group etc do excellent cosmetics (although high in nasty chemicals) - however I've tried every foundation under the sun and the Body Shop does the BEST foundation ever!

    Thanks so much for putting into words what I've always thought - love your blog :) xxx

  7. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

    Great post! I completely agree!

  8. Preach! Going cruelty-free can be a huge change if you're only used to certain brands but it can be done. I think a lot of people get worried that they can't be the perfect consumer but there's no such thing - small steps are certainly better than doing nothing at all.

    I started off by going cruelty-free, then vegetarian, and now I'm slowly trying to eliminate dairy from my diet, and it was going cruelty-free that led me to become a vegetarian in the first place. Doing things at a slow pace has made the changes stick. I genuinely had no idea that animal testing was so widespread until I went cf but to be aware of it and not try to do anything at all is just lazy and selfish.

    It also really pissed me off when I saw people saying that we were all 'jumping on the bandwagon' when we were angry that NARS are going to sell in China. It's not a trend - it's a huge step back for animal welfare, so of course we were going to say something about it.

    Wonderful post that's summed up what I think a lot of are feeling right now! xx

  9. Did I write this in my sleep...
    No, obvs not. But I sure as heck could have done - I'm an ethical vegan, I lead a cruelty free lifestyle in all aspects of my life and am learning more and more about the numerous and huge variety of products out there the more you look. AND my name is Sarah!
    I concur with everything you've said and the sheer number of excuses some people give when they say 'they couldn't be vegan' or 'but, I love Mac!', it's just exasperating.
    Do glad to have found your blog - keep up the excellent work ������

    1. Thanks so much for reading and commenting! I'm glad you could relate to what I've said xx

  10. This is something that gets my back up too. I try not to preach but it's such a big thing for me I find it hard to hold back.

    A few of my friends are vegan/vegetarian and will lecture others until the cows come home about meat and animal products and the cruelty it involves. Yet I go to their homes and see that literally every product in their house, from household cleaning to makeup.. is all from tested brands.
    In my opinion, you cannot do one and not the other.

    My vegan friend wears a leather jacket because "it's her favourite and cost a lot of money". Are you freaking kidding me?

    Whole heartedly agree with you and will share the shit out of this x

    1. Thanks Laura! I agree it can be frustrating at times seeing stuff like that but at the same time I don't always think its realistic for people to change everything all at once. Hopefully if they are veggie or vegan then it will eventually extend to their household products and beauty products, but everyone goes at their own pace and we shouldn't automatically call someone a hypocrite for not being 100% perfect. Thanks for sharing! xx

  11. I personally think going cruelty-free (at least on the cosmetic area) is easy since there are plenty of great products. It's a shame that NARS decided to no longer be cruelty-free. Michelle|

    1. I agree, it's really not a difficult choice at all x

  12. Absolutely agree with this post! However I see a lot of people tell others that they're hypocritical for being cruelty-free but non-vegan, which I think encourages the idea of "if I'm not going to be perfect I may as well not bother". I think it's important to change this dialogue, although I see a lot of people trying to as well!

    Paris x

    1. Yep that dialogue isn't helpful at all. There is no rule book! You can shop CF and still eat meat, its up to you! Any change in the right direction is a positive one. Unfortunately there are some vegans who discourage others by making it seem very all or nothing but thats simply not the case. Hopefully if you've made the connection to shop cruelty free your compassion will eventually extend further to what you eat but everyone changes at different paces. x

  13. Sarah, I ADORE this post. I was directed here from Catitude & Co, who shouted this post out as a great one tackling the NARS debacle. I have decided to shop cruelty free cosmetics now, but I have a super random question...

    So, years ago, I got a NARS lip pencil, and I still continue to wear it. However, like, this makes me feel weird because, should I stop wearing it? I now the brand has recently made this problematic shift, and it is one that I do not support, but I acquired this product back when the brand WAS cruelty free (2014?) and have no reason to suspect anyone was harmed. How do I go about this? Am I being silly trying to justify using this product now that I know the brand is making choices I don't agree with? On the one hand, I don't want to encourage people into buying it (I used to recommend it, but now I go out of my way to dissuade people from buying it). Should I put it aside for now and not wear, so as not to give mixed messages?

    Also, sorry if this is a frivolous concern and feel free to ignore my question, I just really enjoyed your post and was honestly wondering what your perspective is on using cosmetics from brands who have made the switch to non-cruelty free even if you purchased them in good faith that the brand was cruelty free at the time the product was made and bought.

    1. Thanks for your comment Meghan! I think when I first decided to go cruelty free I had so many products that were tested on animals so I had to decide what to do with them. I think its totally ok in the transition to use up any existing products you own with the intention of finding a cruelty free alternative once it has run out. I think a lot of people do this because its less wasteful and the money has already been spent so the damage has been done. But obviously when you bought that product Nars were considered a CF brand. If on the other hand you feel like you don't want to wear it anymore then I would considering donating it to a charity like a woman's refuge or friends/family rather than just throwing it away. I see a lot of people using up their non CF products and talking about recommendations for alternatives so you're not alone in this! The important thing is that you've decided to make the change and thats amazing! xx

  14. Thank you so much for this post! I got equally as annoyed at Niomi Smart - it was exciting to see a big blogger start to talk about CF but then she started using Dior etc.

    Kate x


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